Skip to content
The William and Mary Davis Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The William and Mary Davis Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$192k
Granted FY2024still arriving
33
Grants FY2024still arriving
6
States reached
$60k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0194% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2018 to 2024.

Youth Development$470kReligion$116kArts & Culture$97kPhilanthropy$89kHealth$81kEducation$66kHuman Services$48kCommunity Improvement$21kOther$0
02FY2024 · 33 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k28 grants · $77k
  • $10k–50k4 grants · $56k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $60k
$3,000
Median grant
6
States reached
$467k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
TUSKEEGEE NEXT FOUNDATION$60,000
GO CHI LIFE$25,000
HAYMARKET CENTER$10,500
NORTHWESTERN MEMORIAL FOUNDATION$10,000
PROGRESSIVE BAPTIST CHURCH$10,000
CHICAGO FOUNDATION FOR WOMEN$6,000
ST SABINA CHURCH$5,000
DO SOMETHINGORG$5,000
SOUTHSIDE MEMORIAL DAY PARADE$5,000
TIMOTHY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL$5,000
NEW CITY CHURCH MINISTRIES$5,000
LEADERSHIP GREATER CHICAGO$5,000
EAST TENNESSEE COMMUNITY DESIGN CENTER$5,000
BECK CULTURAL CENTER$5,000
FOX VALLEY CHRISTIAN ACTION$3,500
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY18–24, $62k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 66% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%FOX VALLEY CHRISTIAN ACTION: $4k → 8%VETERAN'S FOUNDATION OF ILLINOIS: $8k → 11%FOX VALLEY CHRISTIAN ACTION: $3k → 8%FOX VALLEY CHRISTIAN ACTION: $3k → 8%FOX VALLEY CHRISTIAN ACTION: $2k → 8%FOX VALLEY CHRISTIAN ACTION: $2k → 8%METROPOLITAN FAMILY SERVICES: $6k → 14%FOX VALLEY CHRISTIAN ACTION: $1k → 8%FOX VALLEY CHRISTIAN ACTION: $1k → 8%METROPOLITAN FAMILY SERVICES: $5k → 14%ELDERDAY CENTER INC: $3k → 8%METROPOLITAN FAMILY SERVICES: $2k → 14%ELDERDAY CENTER INC: $3k → 8%FAMILY SHELTER SERVICES: $500 → 7%QUAD COUNTY URBAN LEAGUE: $1k → 8%ERIE NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE: $3k → 14%YMCA OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $2k → 14%METROPOLITAN FAMILY SERVICES: $5k → 14%METROPOLITAN FAMILY SERVICES: $5k → 14%METROPOLITAN FAMILY SERVICES: $5k → 14%WINDOW: $500 → 14%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.

Which US states its grants reach

VT
MN
IL
NY
IN
CO
MO
TN
NC
DC
AL
GA
TX
FL
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

88%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.2M · 34 repeat orgs$153k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +32% since the first grant, against +27% for those funded once.

34 repeat relationships: 18 still active in FY2024, 16 since wound down; 13 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

34
50

Total granted

$1.2M
$105k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+32%
+27%

Still filing today

50%
44%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 74% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $48k went to new ones.

50%100%’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
Human ServicesYouth DevelopmentArts & CultureEducationHealthEmploymentOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • EY
    EMERALD YOUTH FOUNDATION
    2× · 2021–2022 · $100k · revenue +5%
  • MF
    Metropolitan Family Services
    6× · 2018–2023 · $28k · revenue +245%
  • RC
    Riverwoods Christian Center dba Fox Valley Christian Action
    7× · 2018–2024 · $14k · revenue +141%

Funded once

  • FC
    FIREHOUSE COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER OF CHICAGO
    one grant, 2023 · $10k · revenue +14%
  • TD
    THE DUSABLE BLACK HISTORY MUSEUM AND EDUCATION CENTERgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $10k · revenue +44%
  • VF
    VETERANS FOUNDATION OF ILLINOIS INC
    one grant, 2023 · $8k · revenue -73%
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Live Free Chicago

Live Free Illinois is a statewide organization partnering with over 120 congregations and directly impacted individuals to build safer more equitable communities across Illinois. Operating at the intersection of criminal justice reform and…

—
2
Chicago United for Equity

Connecting and amplifying the power of individuals to build a just, equitable, and inclusive city.

Civil Rights
3
Chicago United

To achieve parity in economic opportunity for people of color by advancing multiracial leadership in corporate governance, expanding the talent pipline for executive-level management, and growing minority businesses.

Philanthropy
4
A Better Chicago

A better chicago is changing how chicago fights poverty by investing in bold ideas that create opportunity for our youth.

Human Services
5
The Chicago Innovation Foundation
Philanthropy
6
The Chicago Network Inc

In furtherance of its charitable and educational goals, the Network's activities consist primarily of providing educational opportunities for its members and the public on issues related to the advancement of women in the workplace. As the…

Community Improvement
7
Covenant House Chicago
—
8
Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce

The chicagoland chamber of commerce combines the power of people, with our legacy of leadership and business advocacy, to drive a dynamic economy. we focus on delivering value for our members, making chicagoland a world-class place to live…

—
9
Kipp Chicago Schools

The team at kipp chicago schools is guided by a simple, yet powerful mission: to create a network of excellent schools in chicago that teach our students the character and academic skills necessary to succeed in college and beyond, and to…

Education
10
Female Strong

Female strong is a 501c3 non-profit organization and a community of committed individuals that offer hands-on programs, mentorship, and experiences that build confidence in middle and high school girls. we support the inclusion of all…

Community Improvement
11
Chicago Public Education Fund

The chicago public education fund (the fund) is a nonprofit organization that improves public schools in chicago by investing in the talented educators who lead them.

Education
12
Thrive Chicago Nfp

Thrive chicago's mission is to prepare chicago's youth for a vibrant future by aligning efforts and outcomes from cradle to career.

Human Services
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Emerald Youth Foundation; the most unlike its peers is True Chicago. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

52 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 52 of the 99 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
13
Early backer (in before they grew)
50/52
Grantees still filing
32/52
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Individual grant recipient: $336,414 · OtherIndividual grant recipientMcDermott Center: $68,500 · OtherMcDermott CenterNORTHWESTERN MEMORIAL FOUNDATION: $60,000 · OtherNORTHWESTERN MEMORIAL FOUNDATIONNEW CITY CHURCH MINISTRIES: $40,000 · OtherNEW CITY CHURCH MINISTRIESCHICAGO FOUNDATION FOR WOMEN: $27,950 · Other+62 more: $208,758 · Other+62 moreTHE TUSKEGEE NEXT FOUNDATION: $330,079 · Youth DevelopmentTHE TUSKEGEE NEXT FOUNDATIONEMERALD YOUTH FOUNDATION: $100,000 · Youth DevelopmentEMERALD YOUTH FOUNDATION+5 more: $17,600 · Youth DevelopmentMetropolitan Family Services: $28,454 · Human ServicesRiverwoods Christian Center dba Fox Valley Christian Action: $14,250 · Human ServicesVETERANS FOUNDATION OF ILLINOIS INC: $7,500 · Human ServicesELDERDAY CENTER: $5,500 · Human ServicesGREENWOOD PROJECT: $3,500 · Human ServicesERIE NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE: $3,000 · Human Services+5 more: $4,500 · Human ServicesGO CHI LIFE: $25,000 · Arts & CultureFIREHOUSE COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER OF CHICAGO: $10,000 · Arts & CultureTHE DUSABLE BLACK HISTORY MUSEUM AND EDUCATION CENTER: $10,000 · Arts & CultureSUSTAINABILITY INSTITUTE INC: $5,500 · Arts & CultureTRUE CHICAGO: $5,000 · Arts & CultureWESTSIDE CULTURAL FOUNDATION: $3,000 · Arts & CultureLINK Unlimited Scholars: $10,000 · EducationCALCULATED GENIUS INC: $8,500 · EducationTHE LINCOLN ACADEMY OF ILLINOIS: $5,000 · EducationWhats Your Forte Foundation: $1,000 · EducationTUSKEGEE NATIONAL ALUMNI ASSOCIATION: $1,000 · EducationMILLIKIN UNIVERSITY: $1,000 · EducationGARFIELD PARK CONSERVATORY ALLIANCE: $5,800 · EnvironmentEAST TENNESSEE COMMUNITY DESIGN CENTER: $5,000 · Community Improvement
Other$741,622Youth Development$447,679Human Services$66,704Arts & Culture$58,500Education$26,500Environment$5,800Community Improvement$5,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetTHE TUSKEGEE NEXT FOUNDATION: $330,079 over 4y, 12% of budgetEMERALD YOUTH FOUNDATION: $100,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetMcDermott Center: $68,500 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetMetropolitan Family Services: $28,454 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetCHICAGO FOUNDATION FOR WOMEN: $27,950 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetGO CHI LIFE: $25,000 over 1y, 3.1% of budgetRiverwoods Christian Center dba Fox Valley Christian Action: $14,250 over 7y, 0.2% of budgetFIREHOUSE COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER OF CHICAGO: $10,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetTHE DUSABLE BLACK HISTORY MUSEUM AND EDUCATION CENTER: $10,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetTIMOTHY CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLINK Unlimited Scholars: $10,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetCALCULATED GENIUS INC: $8,500 over 3y, 6.6% of budgetYOUNG LIFE: $8,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetGARFIELD PARK CONSERVATORY ALLIANCE: $5,800 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetDO SOMETHING INC: $5,500 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetELDERDAY CENTER: $5,500 over 2y, 1.1% of budgetSUSTAINABILITY INSTITUTE INC: $5,500 over 2y, 1.2% of budgetEAST TENNESSEE COMMUNITY DESIGN CENTER: $5,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetDAYSTAR US INC: $5,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetLEADERSHIP GREATER CHICAGO: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetTRUE CHICAGO: $5,000 over 3y, 20% of budgetTHE LINCOLN ACADEMY OF ILLINOIS: $5,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetGREENWOOD PROJECT: $3,500 over 2y, 1.2% of budgetWESTSIDE CULTURAL FOUNDATION: $3,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetHELEN ROSS MCNABB FOUNDATION: $3,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetERIE NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE: $3,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSHILOH COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION: $2,500 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetTHE FOOLPROOF FOUNDATION INC: $2,500 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetCHICAGO URBAN LEAGUE: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCASA KANE COUNTY: $1,554 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetThe YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago: $1,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetANSWER INC: $1,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetDUPAGE PADS INC: $1,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWhats Your Forte Foundation: $1,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetPJ PARKINSON'S SUPPORT: $1,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetMILLIKIN UNIVERSITY: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBF BBOY MINISTRIES: $1,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetTAYA AND CHRIS KYLE FOUNDATION SERVICE FAMILY STRONG: $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetQUAD COUNTY URBAN LEAGUE INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetGIRL TALK INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetDUPAGE HEALTH COALITION: $1,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHope Chest for Women Inc: $1,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetMISSION318: $500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFamily Shelter Service Inc: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWindows of Heaven Community Development Center: $500 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetMIGUEL CABRERA FOUNDATION INC: $500 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetGOLDEN APPLE FOUNDATION FOR EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE DUPAGE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

  • Who funds THE TUSKEGEE NEXT FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds EMERALD YOUTH FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds McDermott Center ↗
  • Who funds Metropolitan Family Services ↗
  • Who funds CHICAGO FOUNDATION FOR WOMEN ↗
  • Who funds GO CHI LIFE ↗
  • Who funds Riverwoods Christian Center dba Fox Valley Christian Action ↗
  • Who funds FIREHOUSE COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER OF CHICAGO ↗
  • Who funds THE DUSABLE BLACK HISTORY MUSEUM AND EDUCATION CENTER ↗
  • Who funds TIMOTHY CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS ↗
  • Who funds LINK Unlimited Scholars ↗
  • Who funds CALCULATED GENIUS INC ↗
  • Who funds YOUNG LIFE ↗
  • Who funds VETERANS FOUNDATION OF ILLINOIS INC ↗
  • Who funds GARFIELD PARK CONSERVATORY ALLIANCE ↗
  • Who funds DO SOMETHING INC ↗
  • Who funds ELDERDAY CENTER ↗
  • Who funds SUSTAINABILITY INSTITUTE INC ↗
  • Who funds EAST TENNESSEE COMMUNITY DESIGN CENTER ↗
  • Who funds DAYSTAR US INC ↗
  • Who funds LEADERSHIP GREATER CHICAGO ↗
  • Who funds TRUE CHICAGO ↗
  • Who funds THE LINCOLN ACADEMY OF ILLINOIS ↗
  • Who funds GREENWOOD PROJECT ↗
  • Who funds FIERCE WOMEN OF FAITH NFP ↗

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

The Chicago Community…Robert R McCormick Fo…John D and Catherine …Lloyd a Fry FoundationUnited Way of Metropo…East Tennessee Founda…Motorola Solutions Fo…Domanada FoundationGrand Victoria Founda…Fifth Third Chicagola…Arie and Ida Crown Me…The Boyd Foundation
The Chicago Community TrustIL26.7× affinity20 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Chicago Community Trust · Robert R McCormick Foundation · John D and Catherine T Macarthur Foundation · Lloyd a Fry Foundation · United Way of Metropolitan Chicago Inc · East Tennessee Foundation · Motorola Solutions Foundation · Domanada Foundation · Grand Victoria Foundation · Fifth Third Chicagoland Foundation · Arie and Ida Crown Memorial · The Boyd Foundation

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization The William and Mary Davis Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The William and Mary Davis Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 20%1%5%11%20%funder's share of their income ↑0%15%30%45%60%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Miguel Cabrera Foundation Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
2get no government money at all
15report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–60%
typical government reliance, FY20–25
How this is measured
Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.
05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to The William and Mary Davis Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The William and Mary Davis Foundation through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 99 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

How this is measured
Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

Generated from the IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on William and Mary Davis’ filings →

More from the funding graph

The unnamed billions
grants reported with no recipient in the public record
The regranting layer
51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
The DAF merry-go-round
$9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
The endowment market
who holds foundation money, and what just moved
The camps
funders cluster by geography, not ideology
By state
where grant money is based, and what stays home